Shattered Memories
by Tolitir
Summary: An imminent system failure with Yggsdrasil Central necessitates a desperate act from Kami-Sama. Lenneth and Freya make the decision to alter reality and bring back the imprisoned Silmeria Valkyrie, but the actions are not without consequences.
1. Silmeria returns

_Author's Note: I've been an avid reader of fan fiction for many years and written reams of notes and scores of half hearted attempts in that same span. This has been a long time coming and it's a pleasure to contribute to a community of writers I've spent years enjoying. _

Lenneth Valkyrie made her ways through the darkened hall of Yggsdrasil Central. The only light was the moon looking down at her through the glass facade of the divine skyscraper.

Her footsteps rapped on the glossy marble floors as she walked across a large plaza, passing by a statue of Valkyrie that rose up high into the air. The top was well beyond sight, but its gossamer wings sparkled in the moonlight several stories above her. Lenneth was glad the darkness hid its face. In all the generations she'd served at Central it never felt comfortable to see herself looking down on anybody.

Lenneth reached the elevator set in the wall just behind the statue. It opened without any prompting and she stepped inside. She stood in the center with her arms folded as the elevator started to rise. She managed to look regal in the simple white robes she wore. A river of silver hair streamed down her back tapering off into a loose ponytail that was tied off with a red ribbon.

The elevator lurched to a halt as an electronic voiced announced, "Server Room," from four tiny brass speakers mounted in the corner.

The doors whisked open and Lenneth made her way through a dark hallway lit by a track of dim blue lights that drew a path through the narrow corridor. Small puffs of fog escaped from her lips as her warm breath made contact with the frigid air.

She came to a stop in front of two metal doors frosted over with ice. Chunks of snow fell to the ground as a panel opened up to the right and a red robotic eye scanned her body with a thin beam of light.

"Lenneth Valkyrie, Goddess First Class, First Category, status unlimited. Access granted to Yggsdrasil core."

The doors parted and a bright light poured into the hallway. She stepped into the light as the doors closed behind her.

"Lenneth, are you sure about this?" Freya said. She placed two fingers on the bridge of her black-framed glasses and pushed it up higher on her nose. "This is a big risk to take. The calculations could be off."

"Did we ever program Yggsdrasil Central to ever be wrong? The computer governs reality."

"Good point," Freya said. "We've also never seen Central calculate its own demise before. Personally, I think it's prudent to wait for the second diagnostic to come back."

"That would take too long Freya. Kami-Sama believes that we should act right now."

"Is that Kami-Sama talking or you?" Freya turned towards the large viewing window in front of her. It was set above a shiny silver console filled with an innumerable number of buttons of all shapes and sizes. A pane of thick glass stood between them and the sphere of pure mana that was suspended in the air. "This is the only power that could bring Silmeria back from Kami-Sama knows where Brahms took her. I know how badly you've wanted this."

"I asked Kami-Sama for permission to take Brahms head and bring her back myself. He would not return me to Fighting Duty."

"Oh," Freya said and sighed.

She stood up and slipped out of a navy blue blazer. She placed it on the swivel chair she was sitting on and rolled up the cuffs on her white dress shirt. Freya smoothed out the matching navy skirt and unfurled the red tie from around her neck. She placed it carefully on top of her blazer so it did not touch the ground.

Lenneth raised an eyebrow, "Must you do all of that?

Freya sat down in her chair and turned back towards the console. "I'm about to initiate a program that violates a major truce with Nifleheim. I'm stalling in the hopes you start to have second thoughts."

"It wouldn't matter if I did or not. I told you that Kami-Sama ordered this."

"You've always had a mortal's curiosity," Freya shot a glance at Lenneth. "I hope this turns out well for all our sakes."

Lenneth stood behind Freya as she booted up the computer. Her fingers moved at lightning pace over the keyboard as reams of code scrolled down the screen. The whirlwind of keystrokes ended with a command line that said execute next to the blinking cursor.

"You should know there are risks to moving that much data into Asgard. Altering reality is no small thing and rarely turns out the way you want."

Lenneth frowned, "I'd rather not think of any of those possibilities. Proceed."

She punched the enter button and looked up at the core. It started to spin faster, gaining speed until the sphere started to flatten out into an oval. The core started to glow red hot when the room started to shake. It finally exploded in a wave of energy that cascaded in all direction.

The energy sent Lenneth hurtling to the back of the room where she hit the wall with a thud and fell to the ground. Her eyes fluttered open and she let out a painful groan. She got to one knee then got up and steadied herself, using the wall as a crutch.

"Freya are you alright?" She asked, still trying to get her bearings

She surveyed the room and saw Freya sprawled out on the floor, her chair toppled over and clothes strewn about. Lenneth rushed over and turned the goddess on her back, brushing back strands of flaxen blonde hair. She looked a little pale, but was still breathing.

"Freya can you hear me?" Lenneth said. She breathed a sigh of relief when Freya started to wake up.

She backed off and let Freya sit up. Started to rub her forehead. "What happened?"

"You hit enter then the core suddenly exploded," Lenneth said.

"The core!" Freya jumped up and ran to the viewing window. She was relieved to see the core intact and otherwise back to normal.

"That's strange all of that and still no…"

"Silmeria!"

Freya whirled around to see Lenneth kneeling over an unconscious figure on the ground. She ran over and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Is she alright?"

"She's breathing," Lenneth said.

Freya knelt down beside Lenneth and looked over Silmeria. She looked pale, skin just a shade darker than her white maiden dress, but her chest rose and fell with each breath.

"She's just sleeping. Silmeria will be alright," Freya said.

Lenneth was astonished to see Freya smile. In all the generations after Ragnarok, she never dropped that serious demeanor that always surrounded her. "I'm happy to see another Aesir join us. There are too few left these days," Freya said to her.

"So am I." She scooped up Silmeria up and faced Freya. "Can you clean up here?"

Freya nodded and she watched Lenneth start to walk out of the server room. She paused in front of the empty corridor and glanced back.

"Thanks for all your help Freya," Lenneth said and disappeared down the dark hall.

Freya waited for the door to close before gathering up clothes scattered about on the floor. "Kami-Sama, I hope she is alright." She slid into her blazer one arm at a time and threw the red tie over her shoulder. Then she dragged the swivel chair back to the console and ordered the lights off.

She sat back down in the chair and started typing away. The monitor light reflected off her glasses as she looked over the diagnostic report.

Thoughts stirred in the dark recesses of her mind, churning into consciousness. She tried to move, but it felt as if a vice gripped every part of her being. Panic set in fueling a primal scream that resonated in the empty space, but darkness constricted her spirit even tighter, squeezing out every last bit of hope for escape.

All seemed lost. It felt so much easier to succumb and simply go to sleep, but a faint light appeared in the distance. Her spirit surged once again, sensing an opening to escape, but the darkness held on tight. She felt warmth radiating from the other side and found enough strength to make one last push towards freedom.

She inched closer to the light, but every movement a struggle as the darkness seemed to sense her escape. The darkness finally let go as she reached the precipice, melting away in the face of light.

She finally stepped through, her spirit weary from the struggle, but one last thought drifted through her mind as she succumbed to sleep

_Silmeria_

Silmeria drew a sharp breath and sat up, her green eyes open wide. She regretted getting up so fast, as the bright light gave her a migraine. She blinked a few times, trying to fight through the searing pain, but it forced her to lay down again.

She waited until the migraine subsided into a dull ache, and got up again. The world was blur of colors and barely defined shapes then the room slowly came into focus.

Silmeria did not recognize anything in the small room. There was not much aside from white walls and a cabinet with a sink set against the far corner. A single light fixture set into the ceiling cast a bright light over the room and a sharp scent wafted from the cabinet.

She tried to recall how she got here, but drew a blank. Silmeria dug deeper, trying to remember anything at all, but her only memory was waking up in this room.

"Oh my goodness! Silmeria, you're awake."

Silmeria turned towards the voice and saw a woman staring at her. She had a kind face and dark brown hair. She wore a set of robes embroidered with a set of earthy tones.

"You know me?" Silmeria said in a raspy voice. She cleared her throat and continued. "Who are you?"

"My name is Nanami and you are in my clinic in the outskirts of heaven. Lenneth brought you in here."

"Who is that?" Silmeria grew worried when Nanami frowned.

"Silmeria," Nanami said, "Lenneth is your sister."

"My name is Silmeria that much I am sure of, but everything else…" She fought to keep composure, feeling a lump form in her throat. "It's as if somebody ripped out my memories."

"What happened to me?" Silmeria said. She looked up at Nanami, pleading with her for an answer.

Nanami placed both arms on Silmeria shoulders and gently pushed her down onto the cot. "I don't know myself to be honest with you. Lenneth just dropped you off and told me to care for you.

She had to deal with an emergency at Central, but she'll be back."

Nanami disappeared for a moment then came back with a small glass bottle. "This will make you feel better." She pulled out the cork stopper and held the liquid in front of Silmeria's face.

"You still look exhausted. We'll try and sort this out later, but for right now just get some sleep."

Silmeria reveled in the sweet smell of sweet lavender and spice, losing track of what made her so upset before. It did not take long before her mind drifted back into a deep blissful sleep.

The door to Nanami's clinic chimed as Frei stepped inside with Amaterasu in tow. She was a short goddess with a cherubim face and a cheerful demeanor that seemed to radiate off of her despite the sorry state.

Frei had scuffs and tears all over the short burgundy dress she wore and there was a tear running along the matching gloves that reached her shoulders. She did not wear a glove on her right hand; instead it was used as a tourniquet to close off a wound near the shoulder. Her short auburn hair was disheveled and sorely missing the cap she normally wore.

"Do you no where Nanami is Ammy?" She looked down at the slender white dog that walked in behind her. She strolled up next to Frei, rubbing her head against the goddess' leg.

Amaterasu sat on her haunches and tilted her head up to sniff the air, the nostrils on her long snout flaring several times. She looked up at Frei and started to whine.

"Nothing huh? Wonder where she is," She walked up to the counter and looked around. On the table was a pad of paper and a handwritten note.

_Out to Central right now be back soon. If you need assistance place wait in lobby and I will be with you shortly. Please respect the other patients in the clinic._

She put the note down and looked at Amaterasu. "Well, we've got some time Ammy-chan lets rest a little bit." Frei sighed and took a seat on one of the sofa's set against the wall.

Frei patted the cushion beside her and Amaterasu leapt up next to Frei. Amaterasu stretched out, taking up almost the entire cushion, leaving Frei a small space at the end. She rested her head on Frei's leg and glanced up without moving her head.

"Why are you so tired? Those guardian eagle chicks were chasing after me the whole time."

Amaterasu snorted in response, her ears flittering as she started to fall asleep. Then she caught a strange scent and her head perked up, ears at attention. She leapt off the sofa and walked towards the back, disappearing behind the receptionist desk.

"Ammy, what are you doing?" Frei sighed as the door leading into the treatment area opened slightly.

She got up from her seat and approached the reception desk when a scream ripped through the entire clinic.

Silmeria's eyes fluttered open once again but this time her headache was gone. She sat up feeling better, but her conversation with Nanami quickly came to mind.

Sleep did not bring back any of her memories.

She sat up on the cot and slid into a seated position so her legs dangled over the edge. Silmeria tried once again to remember anything of her from her past, but the only thing she felt was loss. It was a wound that tore at her spirit, an emotion without a memory that lingered unresolved.

Silmeria eased off the cot and tried to stand up, but her legs buckled and she fell to the ground face first. She tried to get up, but felt too weak to even get back up. After several failed attempts Silmeria buried her head into her hands and started to sob.

She heard a scratch on the door and looked up, her eyes red with tears. The door opened and a creature stepped into the room. Silmeria panicked as a white wolf walked inside.

She crawled towards the back wall, trying to escape, but it cornered her with slow and measured steps. The wolf drew closer and she did the only thing available to her.

"Ahhhhhh!"

Frei burst through the door and spotted Amaterasu sitting on the floor. In the corner she spotted a goddess pressed up against the wall. "Ammy! Come here, your scaring her."

Amaterasu whined and stepped towards Frei, head down and tail between her legs. She looked up at Frei, puzzled at what happened.

"Are you okay?" Frei said. She approached slowly and reached out to the goddess who was still trembling.

Silmeria shook her head, "What…what is that?"

"That is Amaterasu, she is a goddess like you and me." She beckoned Amaterasu forward and she sat beside Frei looking apologetic. "She means you no harm."

Frei smiled when the goddess relaxed a little. She leaned up against the wall and looked up her, still a little rattled. "Do you have a name? I don't recognize you."

"Silmeria," she said, her voice still shaking.

"Silmeria," Frei repeated to herself. The name sounded familiar to her, then her eyes grew wide. "Silmeria Valkyrie?"

"You know who I am?" Silmeria looked up at her surprised.

"I think all of heaven does…your last name at least," Frei said. "Lenneth Valkyrie is the savior of Midgard. She has a statue up in Central."

"I have a sister?" Silmeria said slowly. She looked away from Frei. "Honestly, I don't know if that's even my real name. It's really the only thing I remember that feels like a sure thing."

Frei sat down on the floor in front of Silmeria. "A goddess never forgets her true name. We wouldn't be here without it."

"I'm know that much at least, but everything else is still gone." She finished with a sullen look on her face

Amaterasu whined and pawed at Silmeria's leg.

Silmeria looked down at the dog feeling annoyed. "What's wrong with her?"

"Ammy-chan is sensitive to emotions. She sensed you hurting in the reception room and came in to check on you."

Frei noticed Silmeria staring at Amaterasu, still unsure. "Try petting her. I promise you'll feel better."

She reached out slowly and patted her on the head. Frei chuckled when Amaterasu reached up and licked her in the face.

"She can get a little affectionate sometimes, but Ammy-chan means well."

"How did I ever get scared of you?" Silmeria said. She smiled and started to stroke her soft fur, feeling it slide between her fingers like smooth silk. Amaterasu curled up next to Silmeria and closed her eyes.

"You have a gentle spirit, Amaterasu doesn't take to people that quickly," Frei said. She frowned when Silmeria wouldn't meet her gaze. "Is something the matter?"

"How does she know such a good person when I don't even know who I am?" Silmeria shifted position and sat with her legs in front of her. She wrapped her arms around her legs and peered at Frei over her knees. "I woke up in this room alone, with no past and feeling like somebody ripped out everything near and dear to me. The only thing I know for sure is pain."

"That sounds awful, I'm sorry," Frei looked down, searching for something far better to say." Whoever hurt you didn't take the most important thing. You're fortunate to be sitting here right now, back where you belong."

"Is this really my home? Am I really a goddess? I don't even know what was taken from me."

"I can sense that we are kin Silmeria. You are really a goddess and this is your home," Frei offered her most reassuring smile. "You'll just have to trust your family on this one."

Silmeria loosened up a little bit and sat up with her legs crossed. She breathed deep and exhaled, letting all the tension leave her body. "If this is my first day back, then I'm grateful that you are the first one to greet me."

Silmeria she stiffened up at first when Frei grabbed her in a tight embrace. She allowed herself to relax and simply enjoy a sense of belonging somewhere. She looked at Frei with different eyes now, making sure to remember every detail of her newfound family. She frowned, noticing her ripped clothes and the glove tied off around the wound on her arm.

"You're hurt Frei, what happened to you?"

"Oh this is nothing," Frei tried to wave her off, but she couldn't hide the grimace. That hug touched off a few sore spots. "Me and Ammy-chan were tending to a new flock of guardian eagles when something set them off all of a sudden. We got caught up in all the ruckus."

Silmeria looked down at Amaterasu who looked up at her, tail wagging. "Well at least she's ok."

Frei chuckled, "She was smart enough to get out of the way."

She got up and offered Silmeria her good arm, "It looks like Nanami is still at Central, help me dress some of these wounds and I'll give you the proper tour of heaven."

Silmeria smiled and stood up on her own, using the cot as leverage. "You helped me enough. It's time for me to return the favor at least."

"Alright then," Frei said. She leapt up on the cot and scooted to the edge and let her. "I look forward to your expert care."

"She woke up hysterical. I gave her some medicine so she could go to sleep, but it should only last a few more hours." Nanami said. The door chimed as she pushed the door open to her own clinic. "I didn't want to leave her alone, but Silmeria needs to wake up and see her sister first, not a healer."

The door chimed again as Lenneth walked in behind her. "You did the right thing Nanami. I should have been here from the start, but the power surge at Central really made a mess of things."

Lenneth stopped walking the moment she entered. "Nanami, I don't sense anybody in here."

"Are you sure?" Nanami said. She ran to the clinic and flung the door open. It was completely empty.

She came back out to the lobby find Lenneth reading a hand-written note on the desk. Lenneth did not say anything and handed it to Nanami.

_Nanami,_

_Taking Silmeria on a tour of heaven. I helped myself to some supplies and tended my wounds before leaving._

_Thanks a bunch_

_Frei _

Nanami looked up to an empty lobby and the entrance to her clinic slamming shut.


	2. Streets on Fire

_Streets on Fire_

Frei and Silmeria followed the path of recently flattened path of grass and white lilies that led away from Nanami's clinic. It was now little more than a speck in the distance as two goddesses made their way through the outer lands of heaven.

Frei enjoyed talking and by the same token Silmeria enjoyed listening to anyone's voice.

The only thing she knew for certain about her past is that it was dark and lonely, yet she enjoyed Frei's tale about the weeping lilies even though it was very sad. The cheery goddess waxed poetic about the many mortal lovers that died straying into the meadow of sweet-smelling lilies to gather a bouquet. The flowers gained such a reputation that its spirit came to heaven and now covered much of the outer lands.

Silmeria was breathing heavily as she trudged the final few steps up and over the ridge of a steep hill. She forgot about being tired after seeing the vista far below her. The dirt path wound its way down toward a cliff that dropped off into a void darker than the night itself. Stars lay spread out in the void forming a twinkling path to a city out in the distance. Heaven looked like a portrait in the sky, a splash of color set against a black canvas. The metropolis rested on top of a massive floating mountain that seemed to be chopped in half. The flat ground was rife with tall buildings and spires of gleaming gold that formed the skyline.

Frei pointed towards the tallest tower of them all, a silver skyscraper that never stopped rising until it disappeared into the void. "That building is Central, perhaps the most important place in the known universe. At its core is the Ultimate Force— the battery that powers Yggsdrasil Central. It's the sworn duty of all higher beings to protect it at all costs."

She grabbed Silmeria's hand and forced her to sprint down the path. "There'll be plenty of time to explain things once we get there. Don't want to spoil the entire tour." She said as they ran. When they reached the edge Silmeria plopped down on the grass completely exhausted.

She took a moment to catch her breath then glanced up at Frei. She seemed to be staring at heaven out in the distance, head cocked to the side, right hand on her chin as if it were some giant puzzle piece.

"Frei, is something the matter?"

Frei shook her head then turned towards Silmeria. "Sorry, it's just, I just felt something strange…" She trailed off searching for the right word. "I can't seem to feel the presence of Central anymore."

"You can feel a building?" Silmeria raised an eyebrow. "I don't feel anything."

"Your not connected to the mainframe yet so it's hard to explain. Every living creature is monitored and catalogued by the Yggsdrasil, but those of us that work in Central are actually connected to the mainframe. I can feel can every deity connected to Yggsdrasil no matter where I am.

"That must feel wonderful." Silmeria said, feeling her own isolation. She sat up, knees in front of her chest and stared at Heaven alongside Frei. "Will I be able to join Central?"

Frei smiled, "You are related to Lenneth Valkyrie. That's a foregone conclusion."

Silmeria stood up with a resolve she hadn't felt since waking up. "Then let's go over there now. I don't want to wait."

"I admire your spirit, but that's not how it works. Kami-Sama decides when you are ready. He will call out to you when its time." Frei examined her head-to-toe and frowned. "Besides, I won't let you become a goddess right now. You're dressed like a hospital patient!"

Frei lifted the floppy sleeves of Silmeria's tan robes. It hung on her like a wet blanket on a clothesline. "Perhaps I can conjure up an outfit for you." Frei forced Silmeria to stand still, arms at her side. She tried to envision a new look.

Silmeria wasn't much older than her and wasn't the intimidating sort of beauty that her sister Freya was. The goddess could wear a business suit and get anybody to pine for her. She didn't have that the uncanny air of calm that Lenneth carried either. The elder Valkyrie wore modest robes yet commanded respect from just about anybody.

She was somewhere in between with deep green eyes that reflected a divine ancient soul, but the demeanor of a mortal. Silmeria was beautiful with blonde curly hair that fell to her shoulders and a pale oval face, but she always looked worried about something. Goddesses rarely showed their true emotions, but she couldn't hide it if she tried.

"I got it." Frei closed her eyes and put both arms out front palms up. Silmeria looked down astonished as her clothes started to break down and materialize into something else.

"Light wash jeans, black flats for comfort and a modest black blouse," Frei ticked off each element like a proud mother. She conjured up a black headband and gently pushed her hair back, accentuating her face. "Modest, functional and discreet. Perfect for you."

Silmeria examined her outfit, twisting this way and that to try and catch a glimpse of each part. She couldn't help but notice it was much less exotic than Frei, who wore a short burgundy dress that fit snugly against her body with matching thigh-high boots, gloves and a cap on her head. It suited her though and Silmeria felt it rude to be picky about clothes made especially for her.

"It's comfortable. I like it," Silmeria said. "And it is nice to get out of those robes."

"Good," Frei smiled. "Now you are ready to go home."

Frei pursed her lips and unleashed a shrill whistle that disappeared into the void. She raised a hand to her forehead and scanned the horizon. "Over there!" She pointed at two points of light growing larger in the distance.

Silmeria made out two sets of flapping wings before a pair of large eagles swooped down on them. She braced herself as they dove toward them, slowing up at the last moment with one swift flap of their wings.

The Eagles landed dutifully in front of Frei, their sharp eyes staring straight at her. One lowered its head and bumped her several steps backwards. She looked at Silmeria a little embarrassed "These two are a little young." She rapped him on the head, "They need to learn their manners.

Silmeria laughed, "They are beautiful." She covered her ears when it let out shrill scream. "And loud."

"She appreciates it," Frei smiled.

Frei hopped onto the saddle of one eagle. "Normally we can ride the lei lines of mana all the way back to Heaven, but you can't access any of your mana right?

Silmeria shook her head, "Sorry, I don't know what that is exactly."

"That's alright, just means we'll have to take the scenic route," Frei said. She twirled her finger and the other eagle trotted in front of Silmeria and spun around.

"Just hop on like I did. It's pretty easy."

Silmeria pointed to herself, "You mean me? I…I don't know."

Frei frowned, "C'mon. You've got to try at least. How are you going to become a Valkyrie if you can't get on a mount?"

"Hey! I never said I couldn't do it," Silmeria said hotly. She fitted one foot in the stirrup and hoisted herself up onto the saddle.

"See, that was easy." Silmeria grabbed the reigns and breathed a sigh of relief. That went a lot smoother than she thought. Then the eagle jostled a little bit and she nearly fell over the side. She hung on for dear life as the eagle reared up and started to flap its wings.

"Easy girl, she's got you" Frei cooed and the eagle settled down. She jumped off her mount and helped Silmeria back into her seat. "You got a little cocky there. Just relax and they will relax

"So what's next?" Silmeria said, her face slightly red with embarrassment. She readjusted her headband as inconspicuous as possible.

Frei pointed to Asgard floating in the distance, "We're going there."

Silmeria turned towards the sky when she saw an object streak towards them. As it got closer she recognized Amaterasu running towards them. Amaterasu slowed down then sat down on her haunches in front of them. She floated over the void on a firm white cloud, tail wagging frantically behind her.

Amaterasu looked over to Frei then back to Silmeria. She barked when Frei gave the ok and trotted over to Silmeria. She pushed her head against Silmeria's hand. "Nice to see you again Ammy-chan," Silmeria smiled and rubbed the soft fur on her head. Amaterasu licked her palm to say thanks and walked over to Frei.

"Thanks for preparing the eagles for us," Frei said. "We'll take these back to the Aviary ourselves Ammy, go on ahead and we'll meet you there."

Amaterasu arched her back and let out a howl that seemed to resonate through the void. Then she sprinted off of the edge and ran toward Asgard.

"Now it's our turn," Frei said. "She's trained to follow me so just lean forward and hang on tight."

Silmeria nodded and she watched Frei snap the reigns. Her eagle flapped its wings several times as it started to gain lift then dove off the edge. It disappeared below the land then rose high into the sky and started to gain speed as it flew through the air. She hung on tight when her own mount approached the edge. She squelched a scream as it dove towards the void. Just when it felt as if the darkness would swallow her up, they started to rise into the air until they were level with Heaven.

She gripped the reigns tight at first, afraid the rush of wind would blow her off, but the ride got smoother. She chanced a look up, sneaking a peek over the head of her eagle. Heaven thoroughly dominated the horizon, looming larger with each passing moment. She wondered what it would be like to live there, whether she was even worthy to live among the gods. Frei was so sure that she was a goddess, but there wasn't any part of her that felt divine or special in any way.

Silmeria realized such thoughts were useless and shoved them to the back of her mind. She woke up in this world all alone and without a past to fall back on. Frei offered hope that there was a home for her there in Heaven. There really wasn't any other choice but to believe that the gleaming city offered a truth that seemed too good to be true.

"Yes Rufus! I know that Alfheim is important," Freya said lowering her voice. "Almost every Fighting Duty goddess in Central is concentrated there. You have my personal assurance that none of the high elves at the embassy will come to harm."

Freya closed her eyes when there was a moment of silence on the other end. "Ok, but I will be monitoring this situation very closely," she finally heards him say.

"Thank you." she heard a click then slammed the handset down on the base with an audible crack. She lost track of how many leaders called her asking why Central was on the brink of collapse.

The trouble started last night when the entire system shut down temporarily. That surge they felt after bringing Silmeria back was the core discharging excess mana to prevent an overload. It didn't take long for the diagnostic to come back with multiple failures within the system.

The damage was extensive and the repairs were going far too slow for her liking. They lost connection with all of Midgard for only a moment, but the power loss was enough to cripple the main frame and all of Central along with it.

Freya sighed then turned towards the massive bay window behind her. She took the corner office in Yggsdrasil Central because it had one of the best views in all of heaven. It was second only to Kami-Sama who held a suite at the top of Central. He couldn't have been happy seeing the scene below.

Central plaza was a massive courtyard of red brick and whitewashed stone with boundaries that encircled the entire tower. Today it looked like a refugee camp with gods and goddesses crammed into the plaza. They were still pouring in from the back alleys and tiny thoroughfares of the divine metropolis.

In a crisis they looked towards Central as a symbol of stability, but they were anything but stable right now. Wisps of smoke rose from the Commercial District to the west. A gray haze obscured her view, but spots of orange light burned intermittently throughout the district.

Freya was sure the source of her troubles lay over there. She never liked allowing the dark elves to have free reign over any part of Heaven, but Lenneth brokered a deal with the Vanir to avoid a war of control over Central. The Commercial District was a boon for them, bringing deities from all over to trade within Heaven. The drow brought notoriety and some much needed diversity in a city of all too perfect beings.

Trade within heaven brought talented gods and goddesses, but loyalty and leverage go hand-in-hand with a former enemy. Freya was sure that the drow at least had thought about a Coup; perhaps waiting for a situation like this to seize Central.

Freya was at a disadvantage with the Yggsdrasil mainframe still down and it bothered her to no end. She picked up the receiver on her desk and punched in a few numbers. "Moira, this is Freya. Forward me to Peorth in SysOps." She hit the speaker button on the phone and put the receiver down.

System Operations was already pulling double duty since the crisis began. Skuld was relatively young, not much older than Frei, but a reliable system administrator that was well liked by the other programmers. Her age was a point of contention as far as handing her the post, but when she and Lenneth started to vet candidates for the position Kami-Sama insisted she get the lead position.

Freya knew she was a brilliant programmer, no doubt the best in all of Central, but political savvy was another story. Peorth was her choice as second within the department. She was adept at currying favor among the other departments in Central so SysOps could continue to function. She served as a buffer for her much more eccentric boss.

"Peorth, System Operations." The voice crackled over the speaker.

"Peorth this is Freya. I need an update on the repairs."

Freya heard paper shuffling on the other side, and then Peorth's harried voice came over the line. "Yes Freya…Progress is going slowly. We've established links to many of our core worlds. That's provided us with enough mana to at least get the main frame back up and running."

"What about core services? There are people all over the city clamoring for an update and I've got nothing to tell them." Freya didn't want to tell Peorth that security was down. That there was a burgeoning rebellion in the Commercial District and nearly the entire city was camped in Central plaza. They had enough troubles it sounded like.

"We're working on that, but there's some trouble establishing a link back to some of the worlds farther away from Central plus a majority of the data that came in after the overload was corrupted. We're having to repair the timeline for multiple realities and scramble to provide power for our systems."

Freya rubbed the bridge of her nose with two fingers. Nothing was going right today and it gave her a very ungoddess-like headache. "Peorth, send Skuld up here now. I don't care what she is doing right now."

"Y…Yes ma'm," Freya heard a click on the other end and an empty dial tone that resonated throughout the office.

Lenneth made her way over the ridge just in time to see the fading images of two guardian eagles heading towards the city. She was sure Frei was heading towards the Aviary to return the eagles; they would be vulnerable flying right over the Commercial District.

She was angry with Frei for being so reckless, but there was no way to contact her about what was going on in heaven. Frei left for the outer lands last month to tend the guardian eagle nests with Amaterasu. She was due back at Central today.

"Valkyrie!" She turned around to see Nanami running towards her. She bent over a moment to catch her breath. "Did you find them?"

"They mounted eagles and left for Asgard. I just missed them."

"Moira called the office while you were gone. Lind is looking for you; she said to meet her in the embassy district. It's urgent," Nanami looked concerned. "Is everything alright?"

"There were some complications bringing Silmeria back here," Lenneth said. "Nothing to worry about yet Nanami, but you should stick to the clinic for a while."

Nanami nodded, "I understand Valkyrie. Are you going back to Central then?"

Lenneth closed her eyes and breathed deep. Her robes changed to a long white dress that covered her ankles. Then a white breastplate materialized on her bosom along with grieves and a set of gauntlets on her arms and legs. Each piece was inlaid with gold around the edges, and the symbol of the World Tree Yggsdrasil etched into each piece.

Her sword rested in a scabbard at her hip. There was a jewel encrusted in the pommel with a crystal angel embedded inside. "When you get back to the clinic phone Freya and tell her what happened with Silmeria," she said without looking back at Nanami. "The central mainframe is down and I can't raise her telepathically outside of the plaza."

Nanami nodded then watched Valkyrie disappear in a flash of light. She turned her attention towards Asgard and wondered what was going on up there. Lenneth only appeared as the Battle Maiden when she was sure fighting was absolutely necessary. She thought about the others living inside Heaven. Many of the Einjerhar that served Lenneth still lived inside the city as civilians now. She said a silent prayer for them and turned around to begin the long trek back toward the clinic.

Nanami had a feeling she would be very busy today.

Peorth hung up and walked away from the bank of telephones that stood in a hallway leading into the Information Technology room at Central. It was a short walk back into the command center, but she needed every bit of it to figure out a way of breaking this to Skuld without getting the goddess nervous.

Skuld was scared of Freya, as were the other programmers here in Central. She was the one that created System Operations and generally ran this place from the background. She left things up to Skuld to work out as the best programmer among them, but her management skills were a little unusual. Usually it fell on Peorth to smooth things out and deal with the higher-ups.

Freya had a reputation in heaven as being more than a little cold and there was always a feeling that they were on the chopping block. The other divisions within Central, mainly fighting duty, thought SysOps was unnecessary. Their more aggressive sisters thought that Central worked fine for centuries. No need to waste valuable talent on more debuggers and programmers.

Today Central was wishing there was more of them to go around.

The automatic glass doors parted as she entered the Command Center. She was already dog tired, her auburn hair loose and disheveled, tie already gone, and the top button of her dress shirt undone. But there was no time to rest right now. They had to get the Central mainframe back up and running.

Peorth hardly noticed the chaotic scene as she trudged up a central staircase that cut through the rows of consoles lined up in a half circle around the room. All the screens were centered on a hologram of the Ultimate Force projected in midair. Red dots flashed all over the green sphere as it spun, revealing fresh errors and alarms that appeared to be left unheeded.

Nobody was being negligent; it's just there were too many errors that needed to be fixed.

She patted the shoulder of one programmer passing by, but she didn't even flinch. Her eyes were transfixed on the screen, fingers moving frantically over the keyboard. Peorth walked up a set of steps in the back that led up to the break room, which was nestled in a secluded perch at the very top of IT. Peorth paused in front of the door, which had a makeshift sign that said "Do Not Disturb" scribbled on it in bold black letters. She didn't bother to knock and simply walked in.

"So far we've stabilized the core worlds closest to heaven, and we're working on the mid-level realms but…" Skuld said. She looked back to see Peorth standing in the open doorway. "Peorth, come in I'm just updating the morning shift on the situation. The night crew is already at wits end trying to solve the power issue."

Peorth looked at the group of goddesses standing around a smaller version of the hologram outside. They didn't say anything as she walked past them up to Skuld. The raven-haired goddess looked at her perplexed, her brow crinkled slightly as she tried to figure out what Peorth was up to.

She placed a hand on Skuld's shoulder, careful to make sure the others didn't hear her. "Freya wants to see you right now." Peorth could almost feel her tense up, but Skuld nodded and looked up at the others smiling.

"I'll be right back. Peorth will handle the rest of the briefing. Listen to her instructions carefully," Skuld said. She could feel all the eyes on her as she made her way out of the room.

Skuld sighed as she made her way down the stairs and through the command center. She'd been dreading this moment since the crisis started. System Operations went about its business in relative anonymity since the upgrade to Central made it necessary to create this division. She took that it as a testament to good design that nobody really paid attention to her department. They were charged with maintaining the status quo after all; the only reason people would pay attention to them is when things went wrong.

Skuld never felt that anybody at SysOps had anything to prove, but apparently others did and they had direct influence over whether they continued to operate. She never understood the politics that surrounded doing anything at Central, which is why Peorth was so valuable. The goddess was a gossip queen, but there was nobody better connected than her. She was a gifted programmer in her own right, but Peorth was the public face of SysOps and lobbied for them relentlessly. She took it as an ominous sign that Freya asked for her directly. All she knew was that a face-to-face meeting usually meant bad news.

The programmers were tired, she could tell from the haggard faces that some were coding purely on instinct. They were in essence rebuilding the entire mainframe after the power failure rendered large chunks of data useless. It was an arduous task that could go well into next week, but as overworked as they were, they couldn't stop until the core was stable or the whoe crisis would start all over again.

She left the Command Center as the thick glass doors slid closed behind her. It was quite peaceful in this part of Central, far removed from the chaos inside IT. It'd been a full day since she'd gone home, but it felt like a week since she'd seen anything else besides a keyboard and computer screen.

The hallway was empty, the only sound were her footsteps dragging on the plush blue carpet. Skuld stopped in front of Freya's office and took a moment to gather herself. It was a nondescript oak door like any other in the place, but the nameplate seemed to give it extra oomph: Freya, Executive Vice President. The Vice President part did nothing to diminish the title, the President was Kami-Sama and well, he presided over everything in this office.

Freya was his left hand as much as Lenneth Valkyrie was his right. The two of them were the real driving influences in Heaven and they were the ones that executed his will. Lenneth became it's public face after her exploits as the Battle Maiden made her famous throughout the known universe, while Freya made sure that all of heaven was a smooth and efficient place.

Skuld took a deep breath as she placed her hand on the doorknob and pushed her way inside with as much confidence as she could muster.

Freya sat behind a dark mahogany desk in a cushy executive leather chair. Skuld stood at the doorway a moment, staring at the back of her chair when a hand shot up and ushered her inside.

She closed the door and walked up, taking note of the collection of various knick-knacks, photos and papers conspicuously absent from her desk. It was clean and efficient much like everything else in the room. Skuld saw the telephone cord wrapped around her chair and heard her speaking quietly to someone on the other end.

Freya hung up the phone and breathed a long sigh, "Sorry about that, there are a lot of very nervous people calling me today. For obvious reasons."

There was an awkward silence then Skuld spoke up, "Peorth said you wanted to see me?"

"Yes, how close you are to fixing the Central mainframe?"

"Not even close, the overload erased nearly all the core systems. Transportation, the limiters, worst of all the balancing systems on Midgard," She ticked off each one on her fingers. "We're working on a temporary patch, but it's a daunting task. So far we've restored basic services to the more stable realms on Midgard, but we're working on the ones farther away from heaven."

"So it's worse than I thought," Freya folded her hands in front of her. She avoided Skuld's gaze. "This took you years to get up and running. This must be hard to handle."

"Ma'm?" Skuld was surprised. Freya had a reputation for being a ruthless and very shrewd goddess. Compassion certainly wasn't something she showed very often. "I'll admit it's tough, but it's important to me…no all of us in System Operations to get things up and running again."

"You've all done great work at SysOps, but I need to ask more of all of you. The troubles on Midgard are starting to spill over into heaven," She wheeled back from her desk and walked towards the window. Freya waved Skuld over.

Skuld was taken aback when she looked out over Heaven. She recognized the blue barrier that surrounded Central plaza. It restricted access only to those with clearance into the Central building. Beyond that was a sight she thought unthinkable in heaven.

Plumes of smoke wafted up from various parts of heaven as small fires burned unchecked throughout the divine metropolis. She saw waves of people streaming towards Central plaza, the crowd cresting at the barrier like a wave breaking against a beachhead. Some managed to trickle in, stumbling towards the Central building while others took to pounding against the invisible wall.

"What in Kami-Sama's name is going on here?"

"This is what happens when a chaos make it's way into heaven," Freya said quietly. "We built Central as a safeguard for the mortal realm. It's purpose to maintain order for our chief constituents.

The system automatically diverted nearly all its resources to System Operations to expedite repairs. As a result internal security went offline throughout the city."

"The sentries, golems even the guardian eagles?" Skuld ticked off each.

"Even the limiters. We have spirits afforded full access to their powers. Needless to say, some have shown their true colors today."

"What about the Fighting Duty goddesses? That's the reason we have them is to defend the city in situations like this."

"They are definitely out there, but there aren't enough of them to handle the number of unsavory characters that have come out of the woodwork."

"I can't believe this is happening…" Skuld said.

"I just got off the phone with Lind. We've just lost communication with Commercial District." She turned towards Skuld. "We'll buy as much time as necessary to get Yggsdrasil up and running, but there is added urgency to this situation."

"Truthfully, it'll take months to get things back in perfect shape. To get security and transportation up in running again? My best guess would be by nightfall and that's if we assign some programmers to deal with it. All of us are focused on Midgard right now."

"You have till nightfall then. Our resources are stretched pretty thin. We are vulnerable right now."

Skuld clenched her fist, and looked up at Freya. "Then we'll have things up and running by sunset then. It's the least we can do for security."

"Do not commit any people to fixing Asgard unless Midgard is secure. Got it?"

She shook her head, "Understood Freya. Tell the folks in Security that we're sorry for the screw up."

Freya looked down at Skuld. "I can't say that to them."

"Why not?" Skuld said, turning towards Freya."

"This was Administration's fault. My fault," Freya said. "We transported a goddess to heaven from an undisclosed location. The core overloaded when we executed the program. It must have been a powerful spell that bound her."

Skuld was about to ask a question, but the look on Freya's face brooked no more discussion. "I'll go give the order then."

She was at the door when Freya called out to her, "Tell the rest of SysOps to keep up the good work."

She nodded and stepped out. Skuld closed the door behind her and leaned up against it for a moment. She closed her eyes, the sight of heaven burning weighing on her mind. One question linger as she made her way back to IT— Who did they try and transfer?

The only thing that Silmeria was thinking as they flew over the vast expanse of the void was falling into it. She clutched the reins tight as she could as its massive wings flapped in slow, broad strokes that propelled them through the air.

_Relax, I promise she would never drop you_

Silmeria blinked a few times as she tried to figure out where that voice came from. "Who is that!" She screamed out over the onrushing air.

_It's me Frei, concentrates your thoughts on me. It's much easier than shouting to each other. _

She looked up ahead at the guardian eagle in front of her and saw Frei looking back at her. Silmeria closed her eyes and thought about Frei then tried to respond.

_Like this?_

Silmeria heard laughter resonate in her thoughts and winced, realizing how silly that must have sounded.

_Yes, exactly like that Silmeria. All goddesses can communicate like this when we're close to each other. Just more proof that we are related. We're getting a lot closer to heaven now so hang on tight, it's going to get a little turbulent._

Silmeria felt the eagle start rise until they became level with Heaven. It was no longer the speck she saw from the outer lands, but it engulfed the entire horizon. For a moment she forgot her fear of falling into the void and merely looked up in awe. It resembled two mountains joined at the base with a peak pointing down towards the void. She could see the jagged chunks of rock where it was torn out from the earth. Farther up she could see pathways carved into the rock that spiraled up towards the flat underside of the upside down mountain.

_That is the residential district where all the deities not associated with Central make their homes. You'll find all manner of spirits from elves to dwarves living there. _

They made a pass around the mountain rising steadily as they circled around the lower parts of heaven. She was moving too fast to really see clearly, but it looked like there were crowds of people running down the spiral path in huge groups. It looked like they were fleeing something.

_Frei, is there something wrong? It looks like they are running away from something. _

_It's late afternoon already, most of the Commercial District closes up shop around now. Most people are heading back to their homes. _

It seemed like a reasonable enough explanation, but Silmeria felt there was something a little off about the situation. She chose to stay silent about her fears.

Frei led them away from heaven and bid her mount to make a pass around so they approach the city straight on. She tried not to let it on, but there was something off about the scene. Those people were afraid of something and were scrambling to get back into their homes as soon as possible.

She thought back to the incident that got her injured, a strange disturbance that set off the nesting guardian eagles. Frei had been on a trip to their nest, which stood in a remote location in the outer lands. The birds were sensitive to disturbances, their spirits were tied to the Yggsdrasil Mainframe and it drove their need to protect the city. The eagles were wild animals otherwise and only a power fluctuation within Central could mess with that bond. Frei bid her mount to fly high as possible above the city

_My god Frei, Heaven…it's burning_

She drew a sharp breath at the plumes of smoke rising from portions of the city. A blue barrier surrounded Central Tower, the huge dome of mana encompassing the entire plaza. _Something is very wrong. The barrier only goes up as a precaution, when Yggsdrasil Central itself is threatened. _

Frei steered the guardian eagle a little lower and headed towards the aviary, which stood west of Central. It was at the heart of the Commercial District, a tall building that rose above the blocks of merchant shops and stores funded by the goddesses of Central looking to buy things from far off realms.

She could tell there were fires burning throughout the district, but smoke hung in the air like a thick fog. Frei wondered if that was intentional since it obscured her view of the streets. Suddenly she felt something whiz by her ear. Frei looked up to see the glint of metal and a sparks trailing from an enchanted arrowhead. It didn't take long for another to fly by, then another as they started to shoot up from below like a swarm of insects.

_Silmeria keep your head down and hang on! We're heading towards the aviary. _

Frei whipped the reigns and forced her eagle to rise sharply and escape the storm of arrows. She was following Silmeria's mount towards the blue skies above when she saw the net flying up from below her, carried up by four arrows. It snared her mount with a heavy rope net and they dropped like a stone. The eagle struggled to break free from its bonds, trying desperately to flap its wings, then an electric shock coursed through the ropes.

"Frei!" Silmeria yelled as she saw the eagle disappear into the smoke-filled streets. She reached back, tears already falling from her eyes, but her mount dutifully made its way towards the aviary.


End file.
